If i buy a phone listed as a "No Contract Verizon Cell Phone" on a site like Amazon.com, would i be able to activate that phone on my current Family Share plan on my existing line? My Verizon says i'm eligible for upgrade... sometime later, but does that mean i can't activate a new device to replace my current one until i'm actually eligible for an upgrade? When i go through Verizon's site looking at getting a phone at retail price, it says something under the button to add to cart about a fee for breaking contract or something. I'm not exactly sure how the 2yr contracts work in relation to hardware, i thought they were just for the services being provided, or does adding a more advanced device constitute changing the services enough to require a new contract, therefore breaching the current contract? I didn't think about it at first, but decided to try to look it up just in case, and the only discussion i found on a similar subject seemed to indicate that there would be an issue in adding a device like that, but that was for a "prepaid phone", and i'm not sure if that's the same as "no contract phone". I'm looking at getting a 4g lte phone (which i know i need to get a sim card for) to upgrade from my current non-smartphone, so i figure this might actually be an issue i should look into before dropping hundreds of dollars on a phone i might not be able to use without possibly spending another few hundred dollars in penalty fees. I'm sorry for being kinda wordy.

I can see how activating a different phone may bring some confusion with regards to your contract. In addition to Tidbits post (Thank you!) I'd like to confirm that if you buy a phone listed as a No Contract Verizon from a third party you will be able to activate on your current Family Share plan on your existing line as long as the ESN is not included in the lost/stolen list. You can confirm phone activation eligibility online at this LINK.

I understand that you are eligible for an upgrade sometime later; please be assured that activating a device obtained via a 3rd party does not affect your contract term or your future upgrade eligibility, You can activate/switch phones online at your convenience.

Buying a Verizon Wireless phone from us at full retail price does not extend, breaks or modify your current contract. Your 2 year contract remains unaltered even if you replace your phone with one obtained via a third party; keep in mind that depending on the type of phone you activate you may need to add features to your account (i.e. replacing a basic phone [no need for data plan] with a Smartphone which require a data plan feature to be added) but adding a more advanced device does not require a new contract and does not breach the current contract.

If you get a 4G LTE phone from a third party you will need a SIM card (we provide free of charge) to activate and you can order SIM card online if you login to your My Verizon account or by calling 800-922-0204 when ready to activate. You will not incur any fees for replacing your basic phone with a 4G Smartphone; however keep in mind that you will have to add a data plan feature for your Smartphone when you switch the device.